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One day, when I was a freshman in high school, I saw a kid from my class
was walking home from school. His name was Kyle. It looked like he was carrying all of his books. I thought to myself, "Why
would anyone bring home all his books on a Friday? He must really be a nerd."
I had quite a weekend planned (parties
and a football game with my friends tomorrow afternoon), so I shrugged my shoulders and went on. As I was walking, I saw a
bunch of kids running toward him. They ran at him, knocking all his books out of his arms and tripping him so he landed in
the dirt.
His glasses went flying and I saw them land in the grass about ten feet from him. He looked up and I saw
this terrible sadness in his eyes. My heart went out to him. So, I jogged over to him and as he crawled around looking for
his glasses, I saw a tear in his eye. As I handed him his glasses, I said," Those guys are jerks. They really ought to get
lives." He looked at me and said, "Hey thanks!"
There was a big, relieved smile on his face. It was one of those smiles
that showed real gratitude. I helped him pick up his books and asked him where he lived. As it turned out, he lived near me.
I asked him why I had never seen him before. He said he'd gone to private school before now. I would have never hung-out with
a private school kid before then. We talked all the way home; and, I carried his books.
He turned out to be a pretty
cool kid. I asked if he wanted to play football on Saturday with me and my other friends. He said "yes."
We hung all
weekend and the more I got to know Kyle, the more I liked him. And my friends thought the same of him, too.
Monday
morning came and there was Kyle with that huge stack of books again. I stopped him and said, "Boy, you are going to really
build some serious muscles with this pile of books everyday!" He just laughed and handed me half the books.
Over the
next four years, Kyle and I became best friends. When we were seniors, we began to think about college. Kyle decided on Georgetown.
I was going to Duke. I knew that we would always be friends, that the miles would never be a problem. He was going to be a
doctor, and I was going for business on a football scholarship.
Kyle was valedictorian of our class. I teased him all
the time about being a nerd. He had to prepare a speech for graduation. I was so glad it wasn't me having to get up there
and speak!
Graduation day, I saw Kyle. He looked great. He was one of those guys that really found his self during
high school. He filled out and actually looked good in glasses. He had more dates than me and all the girls just loved him!
Boy, sometimes I was jealous.
Today was one of those days. I could see that he was nervous about his speech. So, I
smacked him on the back and said, "Hey, big guy, you'll be great!" He looked at me with one of those looks (the really grateful
kind) and smiled.
"Thanks," he said. As he started his speech, he cleared his throat, and began. "Graduation is a time
to thank those who helped you make it through those tough years. They include parents, teachers, siblings, and friends, but
mostly your friends. I am here to tell all of you that being a friend to someone is the best gift you can give someone.
I
am going to tell you a story." I just looked at my friend with disbelief as he told the story of the first day we met. He
had planned to kill himself over the weekend. He spoke of how he had cleaned-out his locker so his Mom wouldn't have to do
it later and was carrying his stuff home in preparation. He looked hard at me and gave me a little smile.
"Thankfully,
I was saved. My friend saved me from doing the unspeakable." I heard the gasp go through the crowd as this handsome, popular
boy told us all about his weakest moment. I saw his tearful Mom and Dad looking at me and smiling with that same grateful
smile.
Not until that moment did I realize it's depth. Never underestimate the power of your actions. With one small
gesture you can change a person's life. For better...or for worse.
"Friends are angels
who lift us to our feet
when our wings
have trouble
remembering how to fly"
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